How using alarms changed everything
If you have been around awhile you know that one system that we could not so without in our home is 5 o’clock jobs. Having this timer go off not only signals to me that it is time to start cooking dinner but it also lets the kids know that it is time to do their chores.
Creating a teamwork mentality for our home started with this simple system.
BEFORE this system: I would often forget to start making dinner until it was too late, the kids were too far gone and had entered into hangry in a bad way, then when I started cooking dinner I had them watch a show to give me space to cook the meal they needed. While watching the show they were destroying the living room that I had just cleaned up. I, meanwhile, was getting more ticked off by the minute. Ticked that I was the only one doing anything. Ticked that they were watching tv, destroying the room, and demanding things of me all while I was trying to serve them. Oh, and I am sure that some of this bitter anger was directed toward my husband too because there was plenty of it to go around.
AFTER this system: When that 5 o'clock alarm goes off I hop up and begin to get dinner ready for my people, long before the hangry sets in. Then I am able to signal to my kids that the alarm just went off and that they need to do their jobs. This simple act allows the alarm to be the middleman. I am not telling them to do things, the alarm is reminding us of what we all need to do. If children spontaneously suffer from memory loss then they have their charts to look at to remind them exactly what needs to be done. Setting clear expectations of what and when they are doing things has lessened the arguing and complaining. And not only that but having that set time when we are all working on bringing order to the house and getting dinner on the table has led to a teamwork mentality. Everyone has a job to do and we need everyone to do their job.
If you need help setting these up in your home I would love to hop on a free coaching call with you to think through a game plan. I know that this time of day can feel overwhelming so I would love to help you bring peace through systems.
Cheering you on!
Laura
